Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. If you are using an earlier version (Excel 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Excel, click here: Determining the Day of the Month.

Determining the Day of the Month

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 6, 2025)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021


1

When creating macros in VBA, you may have a need to know the specific day of the month represented by a particular date. For instance, you may want to determine the day of the month on which the macro is being executed. The following code will do the trick:

iDay = Day(Date)

The Day function returns an integer value representing the day of the month of whatever date you provide. In this example, the Date function represents today's date, and so Day returns today's day of the month.

You can also, if you prefer, use the Format function to return a text string that contains the day of the month. For instance, consider this code:

sTemp = Format(Date,"dd")

This returns the day of the month as two digits with a leading zero. You could replace "dd" with other variations; "d" returns the date without a leading zero, "ddd" returns the short day name for the day of the month (as in "Wed" or "Fri"), and "dddd" returns the full day name (as in "Wednesday" or "Friday").

Note, however, that Format returns a string. If your subsequent computations require a numeric value, then it is best to use the Day function.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (9640) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Determining the Day of the Month.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Automatically Inserting Brackets

Want a fast way to add brackets around a selected word? You can use this simple macro to add both brackets in a single step.

Discover More

Deleting Additional Clocks

Windows can display up to three separate clocks so you can keep track of what time it is in various time zones. If you ...

Discover More

Creating a Copy without Formulas

Excel makes copying worksheets (duplicating them) rather easy. However, you may want a worksheet copy that differs from ...

Discover More

Best-Selling VBA Tutorial for Beginners Take your Excel knowledge to the next level. With a little background in VBA programming, you can go well beyond basic spreadsheets and functions. Use macros to reduce errors, save time, and integrate with other Microsoft applications. Fully updated for the latest version of Office 365. Check out Microsoft 365 Excel VBA Programming For Dummies today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Creating Dependent Cells

Making the values in two cells mirror each other may seem like a desirable thing to do. It can be done, as discussed in ...

Discover More

Declaring Variables

Macros depend on the use of variables to do their work. This tip examines how variables are declared in a macro, using ...

Discover More

Understanding the Personal Workbook Filename

The personal macro workbook is a great place to save your macros that you want to use with any workbook. The personal ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 7 + 8?

2021-02-13 09:10:38

Brian P

You refer to “day of the month” in this tip, but in places (“ddd” & “dddd”) it appears to be talking about “day of the week” (e.g., Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday). “Day of the month” would refer to the number (1-31).


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the ribbon interface (Excel 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.